


Dainty Hands Scare Away Nightmares

by EtheAngstMachine



Series: Tony Stark Has Everything And Nothing At The Same Time [2]
Category: Iron Man (Movies)
Genre: F/M, Implied Torture, Nightmares, PTSD, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-04
Updated: 2013-02-04
Packaged: 2017-11-28 05:25:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 681
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/670769
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EtheAngstMachine/pseuds/EtheAngstMachine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony has nightmares. After everything that's happened to him it's to be expected, of course. And then Pepper is there and remarkably, things are better.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dainty Hands Scare Away Nightmares

When Tony woke up in that cave in the desert, the first thing he saw was brown. There wasn't a swarming cloud of black like most near death experiences. He saw the brown and dirty cave ceiling as clear as day. Then he felt a pulse--not quite a pain, but a pulling in the center of his chest. He heard a buzzing, and a constant stream of words, never ending, but not in any language he knew. And then the stench of blood hit his nose, and he blacked out.

* * *

 

When he came too, everything was different (not taking into account his surroundings). His body felt like it was a live wire, buzzing with electricity but always the chance someone might cut the power. That chance, that fear, nearly drove him insane.

His head being plunged in and out of freezing water didn't do much for his fear. Of course he had his logical concerns: "There's a battery connected to a magnet in my chest and I'm being thrown around in water, do these idiots want a missile or a dead body?" But then there was the crippling anxiety for the fact that they truly wanted both.  
The days he spent in the caves with his companion Yinsen were mostly blacked out after his rescue. Only the main principle he realized remained; he was aiding the mass murder of millions for a profit--and despite his change of direction after his rescue, no matter how many tree hungers and potheads thanked him and no matter how much his stock points dropped, the guilt stayed with him while the money hungry Tony Stark remained in that cave.

* * *

 

On long nights like these the memories he'd blackened out rush back to him in his dreams. He awakes with a start just as Abu was about to plunge his head into the water once more. He looked around and came face to face with Pepper, who was still dressed smartly for work with a look of concern distorting her otherwise professional posture.

"Are you alright?" Her voice shook, but her hands stayed steady in her lap.

Tony sat up and glanced at where she was perched on the side of his bed. He ran a hand over his face to clear the sweat from adrenaline and muttered out, "m'fine".

Pepper huffed and went to reach for him but stopped midway. For a moment she looked conflicted, but then she blew out a sigh and started kicking her shoes off.

"Umm what are you doing?" Tony asked as he saw her take off her suit jacket and pull up the covers.

"This is this third time this week you've had nightmares. My job is to make you happy and comfortable and I'm obviously not doing it well enough. So scooch over."

"Scooch?" Tony repeated skeptically, but Pepper was already underneath his large duvet and tucked up next to his side. "Okay then if you think you can keep 'em away be my guest." He murmured sourly. He laid down with his back to her and tried to fall back asleep.

It's not often Tony has a woman in his bed purely for sleeping, so this was a new experience for him. He tried to forget her presence.

He closed his eyes.

Dark brown ceilings and the stench of his own blood assaulted him and his eyes snapped back open.

Small, petite hands touched his left bicep gently and he tensed. She didn't pull back though, she let her fingers lazily stroke up and down his arm. Tony idly wondered why he was allowing this. This was him showing weakness in front of an employee; he'd probably have to fire her in the morning.

But the soft touch of Pepper's manicured hands was taking him off to sleep and when he closed his eyes, there was no freezing water or dried blood, only blissful darkness. He vaguely felt Peppers hands move to the back of his neck and start her massage there.

From there, he floated into sleep.

He didn't fire Pepper in the morning.


End file.
